Reenforced drawer construction



-. Aug. 27, 1935. s. SCHEINMAN er AL 2,012,857

REENFORCED DRAWER CONSTRUCTION Origigl Filed April 1 9, 1933 3Sheets-Sheet l k 112 ATTORNEY yAugfZ?, 1935. v s. scHElNMAN Erm.2,012,8'571 REENFORGED DRAWER CONSTRUCTION Original Filed pril 19, 19333 Sheets-Shet 2 lNvENTpRS .Sol Sahel/1mm? Aug. 27, 1935. s SCHElNMAN E1-AL 2,012,857

REENFORCD DRAWER CONSTRUCTIN Original Filed April 19, 19333`SheetS-Sheet 3 INVENTQRS 77 $02 Sch emma?? Y .fa/fob Mandel Patented27, 1935 UNITED STATES aEENroacEn DRAWER CONSTRUCTION sul scneinmn,white Plains, and .met man, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Original application April 19, 1933, Serial No. 666,895. .Divided andthisA application April 3, 1935, Serial N0.,14,519. In Canada April 14,

22 Claims.l (Cl. 229-9) AThis invention relates to the fabricationv ofreceptacles, and particularly oftransfer or storage illes, suitable forreceiving and storing les oi' correspondence and other papers, and is adivision of our copending application Ser.' No. 666,895, filed April 19,1933. i

It is the general object of the invention to provide an improvedconstruction for receptacles 0f the type indicated in which suchreceptacles are supplied to the consumer in knock-down 'condition lto beerected and assembled by him before use.

More speciiically, it is an object of the invention to provide atransfer orstorage ille of the collapsible or knock-down type, andparticularly a drawer -member which is 'adapted to slide within a casingand is of extremely simple form and can be easily erected and assembledwith a few very simple movements requiringno study or ingenuity on thepart of the purchaser.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a drawer element forstorage illes which is made of inexpensive materials, including paperboard, thin sheet-metal, wire and the like as preferred components,combined in novel forms which pro-v vide adequately for strength withunusual lightness, and for a desirably low intlammability, with anappearance simulating, when assembled, an f all-metal structure, but atmuch lower cost for materials and labor in fabrication and installation.In particular it is an object of the inven- 'tion to provide a drawermember whose front wall has -a metallic surface which, in addition toimparting to the .assembled drawer and casing the appearance, from infront at least, of an allmetal structure, provides the moisture-proof-and neat, abrasion-resisting surface characteristic of metallic sheetsor layers.

An additional object of the invention is to pro- -vide a metallic ormetal-faced front wall for sliding, drawers of paper andv similarmaterials and at certain limited areas, thereby combining theyadvantages of paper board, namely lightness and inexpensiveness, withthe strength, durability and neatappearance of sheet-metal.,

Another object of the invention is to provide.

. an improved drawer member of knock-down construction combiningelements so connected at the place of manufacture as to involve aminimum :elty will be set forth in the appended claims.

drawings, in which of eifort in erection by the consumer, and havingconnecting devices of simple but very sturdy components, so that theirmanipulation requires no. particular degree of mechanical knowledge, andwhen erected are capable of withstanding heavy g, loads and hard usagewithout requiring any un'- usual degree of care. 4

It is a still further object of the invention to provide a reenforcedpaper ille construction wherein locking or securing means are provided,which are so constructed and associated with the reenforcing parts .ofthe structure as to engage and interlockwith the same in the assembledcondition of vthe receptacle, vthereby insuring a iirm and wear-freeanchoring and interlocking of the' securing means with metallic orsimilar strong and rigid structure. Other objects of the invention willappear from the description following and the features of nov- 20 Twoembodiments of the invention are illustrated by,way. of example in theaccompanying Fig. 1 shows a pian view of a blank used in the fabricationof the drawer or .container which is adapted-to be inserted into asuitablecasing, the blank being shown in its initial stage offabrication.

Fig. 2 is an end Fig. 1. A

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1, after the application to said blankof certain reenforcements,

view of the blank shown in the structure 'being shown substantially inthe .condition in which it is transported and sold.

Fig. 4 is an endfview of the reenforced drawer s cture shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a view in side elevation of the assembled drawer or containerformed with the knockdown structure shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of the structure of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 isa/rear view thereof in elevation.

Fig. 8 is a view in vertical section on the line 8-8 of Fig. '7, upon alarger scale. v

Fig. 9 is a detail view of a locking device with associated portionsoflthe container walls, the same being viewed from the rear of" the frontplate or wall of theA drawer.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary, detail view inrear elevation, looking fromleft to right at the upper left-hand corner of Fig. 8.

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary, detail plan view in section on the line I I-lI of Fig. 9.

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary detail view of a modined form of locking devicefor the rear of the drawer.

Fig. 13 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is aI fragmentary, detail view of a modiflcation of the deviceshown in Fig. 9.

Figs. 15 and 16 show a different form of locking means, Fig, 15 being afragmentary view in elevation, partly in section, of the erected drawerlooking at the inner face of a side wall, while Fig. 16 is an enlargedvertical section taken on the line 16-16 of Fig. 15.

Fig. 17 is an enlarged cross-section through the paper structure of thedrawer showing the corrugated paper construction.

While the drawer structure about to be described is designed primarilyfor use in combination with a casing of the type disclosed in ourapplication Ser. No. 666,895, it is adapted for use in any eld for whichit is suited by the nature of my improvements.

The form of drawer element selected for illustration and description isshown in completed form in Figs. 6 and 7, where it is designatedgenerally by the reference character D,A and comprises a body portionmade preferably of a nonmetallic material such as corrugated paperboard, with a front wall having an all-over facing 35 of sheet-metalwhich is extended around the edges of the front wall portion 36 of thebody to form a metal binding 31.

In fabricating a drawer element of this type, we preferably make use ofa blank which is shown in its initial stage of manufacture in Fig. 1,being there designated generally by the reference character 38, thematerial being of any suitable character, such as stout paper board.

This blank is scored longitudinally, as at 39, and transversely as at40, 4|, to dene the junctions between the bottom 42 of the drawer andthe side walls 43, the 'front wall 36 and rear wall 44 thereof,

Thecorner material at each of the front corners is cut away, as shown,leaving the front wall 36 projecting beyond the ends of the side section43, while the material of the rear flap 44, extendingv beyond thescorings 39, may be left integral with the rear wall, being severed fromthe side walls 43 by the slits 45. This permits these flaps 46 to befolded over, as shown in Fig. 3, and secured to the rear wall 44, as byrivets or staples 47, thereby constituting reenforcements of the rearwall. The flaps 46 may, however, be dispensed with, if desired.

The front wall is preferably increased in bulk or thickness by theaddition of a ply of material Il, such as paper board, which may beriveted thereto, as indicated at 49, along the lower inner 'front edge,while its outer margin may be embraced within the binding 31 and so heldfirmly in place (see Fig. 3).

The margins of the side walls are each vpreferably provided with sheetmetal bindings 50, for the purpose of reenforcement, resisting forcestending to cause collapse or buckling of the side walls, and also toserve as a mounting for ro'- tatably supporting the holding member'5i ofU- shaped stiff wire having latch portions 52, 53 adaptedA to be engagedwith cooperating portions of the rear end wall and. front en'l wall,respectively, as described hereinbelow.

The rear end wall is provided with a similar sheet-metal binding strip54 which may, and

preferably does, have end extensions or wings 55,

with apertures 56 (Fig'. 8), through which the latches 52 extend in theassembled drawer, these wings serving as wear-resisting abutments, andalso to stilen the structure. The latch portions 52 may be heldyieldingly in place by the heads of suitably positioned rivets, or byequivalent means, as shown at 52a, and over which the latch portions 52snap into nal position.

At the front end of the drawer element the hooklike latches 53 extenddownwardly against a cooperating part 56 of the front wall binding, asshown in Figs. 9 and 11, when in operative'and assembled position. Thepart 56 is suitably apertured to receive the latch portion 53, as shownat 56a. y

The inner paper ply 48 is cut away as s' own at 58 (see Fig. l) and arear metallic facing plate 48a is depressed, as shown at 60 (Figs. 3, 9,and 11) to afford clearance for the swingingmovement of latch 53, theindented metallicportion 6U serving also to protectv the paper section36. The inner portions of the metal 'facing plate 31 are bent over theedge portions of the plate 48a, 36 and 48, the whole forming a neat,strong and rigid structure, to clamp therebetween the paperA sections asshown at 60a and 60h (Figs. 8 and The front sheet-metal face-of thedrawer element is show n in Fig. 6 as offset forwardly at four points6I, defining the apices of a quadrangle, to provide retaining means foran. index card; and said sheet metal face' may desirably be offsetinwardly as at 61a to provide a recess in which is mounted swingly abail or handle 62, for convenience in manipulation of the drawer. Thehandle may be pivotally supported in a clip 62a which passes through thewhole front wall, as shown in Fig. 8, the free ends of the clip beingstruck downagainst the inner plate 48a.

The assembly of the drawer member just described will be clear from theforegoing andI may be briey described as follows: Beginning with -thestructure in the condition shown in Fig. 3,

the front and rear walls are raised into the position in which they areapproximately at rightangles to the bottom 42. The side walls are thenbent into similar vertical position and the latch members 52 and 53 areinserted in their respective apertures 56 and 56a. As the contiguousedges of the walls are brought into engagement, the latch members areforced downwardly into the positions shown in Figs. '1 to 11. Thelatches 52 will snap into position after riding over the heads of therivets 52a. The connecting bends 52h between the latch members and thelongitudinal portions of the U-shaped locking members are of such lengththat the latch members engage firmly and closely against the respectiveretaining metal plates, so that the walls of the drawer are rigidlylocked together. It will be observed that the-sev- .eral sections of thedrawer are of simple configuration and the manner of their erectionbecomes immediately evident on inspection.

From the above it will be evident that the paper front wall section 36serves as a-connecting member between the sheet-metal front wallstructure 35, 48a and the bottom 42 of the drawer; however, other modesof connecting the metal wall to the drawer bottom will suggestthemselves to those skilled in the art.

Figs, 12 and 13 show a form of wire holding means which is similar instructure and operation to those already described, having ashankportion 63 mounted rotatably in a metallic bind.

ing-strip 64 upon the upper margin of each side wall 65 of the drawermember. 4The latch portion it of this device is shown as of arcuateshape,

and is adapted to enter retentively into engage-- ment with an aperturedportion G1 of the metal lbinding upon the adjacent portion of the rearIn Fig. A14 we have shown the forward end ofthis ,holding member asprovidedf with a latch i9, adapted to swing in an armored recess 1lprovided in the front wall 1| as already described, the latch being ofresilient construction and arranged to snap into position to one side ofa rivet or stud 11a. The free end of the latch is bent outwardly tofacilitate engagement thereof for releasing the latch. In the embodimentof the invention shown in Figs. and 16, the fastening A or locking meansshown in Figs. 3 to 14 are replaced by boltsV extending from the frontto the rear wall of the drawer, and, like the locking means of Figs. 3to 14, supported preferably within the reenforcing members on the upperedges of the side walls.- As shown in Fig. 1'5 the reenforcing member 12attached to the upper' edge of each of the side walls I3 is providedwith a laterally and inwardly directed hollow portion 13 which receivesthe stem of a bolt 14 whose angularly shaped head 15 is received withina similarly shaped recess in the front wall J6, while its opposite endis threaded to receive a nut 16 which bears against the rear face of therear wall 44, 46, and preferably against the metallic reenforcementsecured to such rear wall. In this way the foldable front, rear and sidewalls are rigidly held in assembled.condition,the locking means, as inthe case of the previously described locking means being supported onandA engaging the reenforcing elements associated with the walls of thedrawer.

Fig. 17 represents a section taken through the paper body portion of thedrawer and illustrates the corrugated paper construction thereof. Thiscorrugated paper construction is composed, as is known, of two outerpaper layers^11 and 1B which are glued or cemented to an intermediatecorrugated. paper layer 1il.y l

From the foregoing, it' will be seen that we have provided a drawercomponent of a ille structure which is characterized by simplicity,strength, lightness and inexpensiveness, and can be used with anysuitable complementary casing structures. When a filing constructionemploying my improved drawer element is used as a unit, or in anassembly composed of similar units, the effect;

produced is that of an all-metal unit or assembly, when viewed from thefront. VAs practically all of the edges of the receptacle are faced orlined with metal, the neat appearance of the assembly is retainedindefinitely. Moreover, the receptacles are much more nearly fire-proofand moistureproof than lescomposed wholly of paper. The individualelements are lighter than all-metal elements of equivalent capacity, andare less ex pensive to fabricate, both as to material and labor. Y Y

In view of the factthat the front wall of the drawer does not have towithstand vertical com-V Y of corrugated or other paper forming the bodyof the front wall of the drawer, nevertheless in thin vmetallic facingis impervious to moisture, is fire-resisting to a certain degree,resists abrasion and preserves the neat, smooth appearance' of thedrawer wall. Moreover, it will simulate the appearance of a solidail-metal structure and to all intents and purposes will perform thefunctions of a thick metal structure in the front wall of a drawer whileat the same time it will be oonsiderably lighter and cheaper.

'I'he knock-down form of the-drawer element renders it easy to transportin quantities, and as they occupy a minimum of space they can be kept instock in large quantities by dealers, or keptin reserve at ofces wherethey are to be usedeventually.

If not needed, individual'units can be knocked down, and the officespace thus saved can be used for other desirable purposes, theknocked-down units being retained for later expansion of the storageilles.

Variations from the specific constructions illustrated and described maybe resorted' to within the scope of the appended claims without de,

parting from the spirit 0f the invention.

We claim:

l. A drawer or container member of the class described, structurehaving-a body formed -of an integral blank of non-metallic materialscored along its portions serving as longitudinal corner edges andtransverse corner edges, the material of said blank being cut away atthe two front corners, leaving a. front end-wall portion and two sidewall portions, and the side wall portions havingv transverse marginalslits in the line of the rear corner Vedge scoring, .to form'reenforcingilaps vbent back against the rear-wall portion and se.

`wires with shank portions mounted 'rotatably in said side wall bindingstrips, and swinging latch portions engaged retentively with said endwalls.

3. A drawer member as set forth in claim- 1, wherein saidholding meanscomprise U-shaped wires with shank portions mounted rotatably in saidside wall binding strips, and swinging latch .other respects performsall of the functions of a stronger layer of metal. Thus, even anextremelycomprising an open quadrilateral 'i portions engagedretentively with said end walls, the rear wall binding being providedwith apertured metal wings adapted to be engaged by the .rear latch-portions of the holding members and to serve as wear-resistingabutments therefor.

4. A drawer member as set forth in 'claim 1,

wherein said holding means comprise U-shaped portions engagedretentively with said end walls,

the frontv wall binding being formed with an apertured keeper portionadapted to cooperate retentively with the corresponding latch portionsof said holding members.

5. A drawer member as set forth in claim l, wherein said holding meanscomprise U-shaped wires with shank portions mounted rotatably in saidside wall binding strips, and swinging latch kportions engagedretentively with saidend walls,

the front wall binding being formed with a keepwherein a portion ofsheet-metal facing of the.

front wall is offset inwardly to form` a recess for a distance notsubstantially greater than one thickness of the material forming theblank, the

front end wall of the blank being cut away t0` receive said inwardoffset, so that the inside surface of the front wall remains smooth atthe rear of such offset, and a handle mounted swingingly in said recess.V

'7. A blank for use in fabricating a drawer member of the classdescribed, said blank comprising an` elongated flat strip ofnon-metallic sheet material in rectangular form, having parallelscorings extending longitudinally of said strip, and parallel transverselscorings extending across said strip, said scorings defining thejunction edges between the bottom of the drawer member and the uprightfront, rear and side walls thereof, the front corner portions of saidblank being cut away, and metallic reenforcing strips permanentlyattached to certain of the edges of the blank and forming the upperedges .of the assembled drawer member to impart rigidity to theassembled drawer member and locking means permanently mounted on theside walls and interengageable simultaneously with the front and rearwalls to lock the same together.

8. A blank for use in fabricating a drawer member of the classdescribed, said blank comprising an elongated flat strip of non-metallicsheet material in rectangular form, having parallel scorings extendinglongitudinally of said' strip, and parallel transverse scoringsextending across said strip, said scorings defining the junction edgesbetween the bottom of the drawer member and the upright front, rear andside walls thereof, the front corner portions of said blank being cutaway, and sheet-metal bindings alongthe upper-marginsof said side walland rear wall portions respectively, and over the front face and aroundthe entire margin of said front wall portion.

9. A collapsible drawer member for storage: files of the classdescribed, comprising an open quadrilateral structure having a bodyincluding front, rear, and side walls hinged to a bottom wall, allformed of an'integral strip of non-metallic material, the front wallbeing higher than the adjacent portions of the side walls, metal facingsupon the upper edges of the side walls and at least upon those portionsof the front and rear walls which are vadjacent to the upper edges ofthe side walls, and locking-means mounted on the metal facings oncertain of the walls and cooperating with butdisengageable from themetal facings on the other walls to lock the walls together into a rigidstructure.

- 10. A collapsible drawer member comprising a body of `rectangular formfolded from an integral piece of non-metallic material, substantiallyrigid reenforcements attached to certain of the free edge'portions ofsaid member which form the top edges of the assembled drawer member,releasable locking means permanently mounted on certain of lsaidreenforcements for holding the folded portions of .said member rigidlyin their assembled positions, the front wall being higher than theadjacent portions of the side walls, and metallic reenforcing means onthe front wall adapted for engagement by the locking means.

11. The structure as set forth in claim 10 wherein reenforcing stripsare attached to the top edges of the side walls, and reenforcing meansare attached to the rear wall, the locking means comprising elementspivoted upon the reenforcements on the side walls and interlocking withthe reenforcing means on the front and rear walls.

12. In a filing receptacle of the class described, a collapsible drawermember adapted to fit within a casing and having a body of non-metallicmaterial, the front wall of `said drawer being faced with metal andAthereby protecting the contents of the drawer from the effects ofmoisture and fire in front of the drawer, a plurality of stackedassembled drawers and their associated casings thus presenting afire-resisting facade which protects the drawer and casing structures tothe rear thereof.

13, A collapsible drawer member of the class described comprising a bodyformed of an integral blank of non-metallic material scored along itsportions serving as longitudinal and transverse corner edges, said blankbeing shaped to provide side. bottom and front and rear end walls, andmeans for holding the walls of the erected drawer in right-angledrelation, the front end wall of the drawer being encased in a metalsheathing and thereby protecting the contentsr of thev drawer fromtheeffects of moisture and fire in front of the drawer, a plurality ofgrouped drawers with their front walls aligned thus presenting afire-resisting facade which protects the rear portions of the drawersand the materials stored therein.

14. A blank for use in fabricating a collapsible drawer member of theclass described, said blank comprising a flat strip of non-metallicsheet material having parallel scorings extending longitudinally of saidstrip and parallel scorings extending transversely of vsaid strip, saidscorings defining the junction edges between the bottom of the drawermember and the upright front, rear and side walls thereof, metallicreenforcements permanently attached to the upper edges ofthe side wallportions of the blank, reenforcements on the front and rear walls, thefront wall being higher than at least a consider; able portion of thelength of the side walls and extending a considerable distancetherea-bove, and rigid releasable locking means mounted on thereenforcements on certain of said walls and adapted tc engage with thereenforcements on the other walls to hold the walls in erectedcondition.

15. A vblank for use in fabricating a collapsible drawer member of theclass described, said blank comprising a fiat strip of non-metallicsheet material having parallel scorings extending longitudnally of saidstrip and parallel scorings extending transversely of said strip, saidscorings defining the `iunction edges between the bottom of the drawermember and the upright front, rear and side walls thereof, and metallicreenforcing strips permanently attached to the side walls longitudinallythereof to impart rigidity to the aslsembled drawer member, the outersurface of the front wall being faced with metal.

16. A collapsible drawer member of the class described, comprising anopen quadrilateral structure having a body including side, a bottom walland foldable side and rear and bottom walls formed of an integral stripof non-metallici material. and a foldable front wall faced with metalvand secured to the bottom wall, reenforcing metallic strips secured tothe side walls longitudinally thereof, and interengaging devices forreleasably securing the rear, front and side walls v to each other inerected condition.

17. A collapsible drawer memberl of the class described comprising anopen quadrilateral structure having a body including a bottom wall andfoldable side and rear walls formed of non-metallic material and afoldable front wall secured to the bottom wall, the front wall beingconsiderably higher than at least a portion of the length of the sidewalls, and interengaging metallic members permanently mounted upon theside,y

rear and front walls'and cooperating to hold the drawer member inerected condition.

18. In a storage flle structure, a collapsible drawer member adapted tot within a casing and comprising a bottom wall and foldable, side andrear walls made of paper material, a foldable front'wall secured to thebottom wall, and means forsecuring the front, rear and side walls inerected condition, the front wall being faced with metal to protect thecontents of the drawer from the eects of moisture and fire in front ofthe drawer, a plurality of grouped drawers with their front wallsaligned thus presenting a fire-resisting facade which protects the rearportions of the drawers and the materials stored therein.

19. A collapsible drawer member of the class described comprising abottom wall and foldable side, rear and front walls, hollow metallicre-v enforcing members secured to certain of said walls, locking devicespivotally mounted in said hollow reenforcing means, and rigid elementsprovided upon the 'other walls for interengagement with said lockingdevices to hold the' walls in erected condition,

20. A collapsible drawer member of the class described comprising abottom wall and foldable side, rear and front walls, hollow metallicreenforcing members permanently secured to the upper edges of the sidewalls, the front wall being higher than and extending above the saidside walls, locking devices pivotally mounted in said hollow reenforcingmeans, and metallic members secured to the front and rear walls andadapted to be interengaged by the locking devices for holding the wallsin erected condition.

21. A collapsible drawer member of the class described, comprising abottom wall and foldable side walls made of an integral piece of papermaterial, and foldable rear and front walls secured to the bottom wall,rigid reenforcing members permanently secured to the upper edges of therear and side walls, a rigid reenforcing member secured to the frontwall, latching devices pivotally mounted on the side. wall reenforcingmembers and cooperating with the reenforcing members on the front andrear walls to secure the vdrawer in erected condition.

22. A collapsible drawer member of the class described, comprisinga`bottom-wall and foldable side walls formedof an integral strip ofpaper material, and foldable rear Aand front walls secured to the bottomwall, the front wall extending above the upper edge of at least aconsiderable portion of the'side walls, rigid reenforcing stripspermanently secured to the upper edges of the side walls, lockingdevices pivotally mounted on said reenforcing members, the front wallhaving a facing of metal at the front thereof and having a rigidreenforcement at the rear thereof. said rear wall likewise provided witha rigid reenforcement, the reenforcements on the front and rear wallsbeingengaged by the locking devices in the erected condition of thedrawer.

soLscnmNMAN. Q

JACOB HANDEL.

